Trading Pet Peeves

I can deal with this, doesn't render the materials unusable at that point. Far too often do I receive the mummy tape treatment. I shouldn't need a knife to get into the bubble wrap!

 

Yeah mummy wrap is the worst. I just got a box in that totally did that .

 

When I first started trading I did a bit of the mummy wrapping. Learned quicker that was silly and unnecessary.

Now I use either rubber bands or electrical tape. I don't like rubber bands for cans. For obvious reasons. (Just not so tight, bro! Yes, I know but the size I always seem to have around need to be double wrapped, an at that point it worries me it is too tight.)

 

I have too. I don't think my trade partner wanted me to actually drink the bottle.

 

Packing peanuts are obnoxious and messy. Also hate it when people don't tape the cap on bottles.

 

I'm not a huge fan of extras. Most of the time they just become shelf turds in my fridge. I'm ok with people just sending me what we agreed on and save on shipping by not including an extra. Every once in awhile I'll get a good one worth drinking, but most of the time extras just pile up in my fridge. When I give an extra it's normally something I have laying around that the person I'm trading with can't get by them...usually something from New Glarus that I'm happy to get rid of to clear room in my fridge. Never do I purchase a beer with the intent of giving it as an extra. that's a waste of money.

I don't think it's right to ask for an extra. If you agree on a trade and a specific extra, then I guess that's considered a plus to sweeten the deal (to make it more fair). An extra should just be a surprise beer in my opinion, and not really something you expect to trade for.

 

I typically am more in favor of not including extras myself but when they are discussed I expect quality as that is what I would be sending. I never ask for extras but I do inquire if the other person involved engages in the gesture and if so that's when I mention my preference if we are going to include them. I find that extras vary from trading platform also, most trades I pull on Instagram they are never included or even talked about whilst on TheBeerExchange.io its almost automatic that extras are included or atleast discussed to some degree. Haven't pulled a trade on BA since I've had this account so I'm not sure what the normal practice is amongst this community.

 

You're not trading with the right people! There have been many, many times over the years when I've been as jazzed about extras as about the beer I've traded for. What might be a 'shelf turd' to someone might well be a beer I've never had, or never heard of, & gives me a chance to try something I wouldn't get to otherwise. I love extras.

I don't mummy wrap my bottles, but as a trader, my #1 responsibility is to get the bottles to my trading partner in one piece. If I get ridiculously wrapped bubble wrap, it just goes into the 'filler' box, so it still gets re-used.

The thing I hate is using black tape on bottle caps. Besides being completely useless (unless you're sending twist-off caps), if it's a bottle that's going to sit in the cellar for a few months (or has already sat someplace else), that tape can turn into flex steel. I've cursed more than one trader when trying to remove old black tap with a crowbar.

 

They used to be common here, but that's dwindling.

I think the reason is three fold.
1) People on BA used to be more ticker-oriented. People were more broad in the styles that they enjoyed, and so an extra was an extra. Enjoyable to try no matter what.

2) Distro has changed - vastly. So, before while someone that had access to something lauded, it was the case that few others did. Now that's only the case if they don't distro, or only distro in a single city, etc. For example, Westbrook isn't an obvious extra unless you're trading someone in the MW or West coast.

3) I think people are more selective on styles now than previously, and know a lot more about what they like and what they don't. Partially because distro is so big now, most people have access to hundreds of beers, even if they are not all world class.

 

I include extras in all the boxes I send. I think the quality is typically very high but that is most likely due to what I have access too and the breweries I visit often. I won't mention typical brews or breweries I send as extras but it is probably easy to figure out by my previous posts and beer reviews.
On the receiving end I don't really care one way or the other, but if someone sends something as an extra that they obviously thought about (e.g. sent something that it seems like I will enjoy based on preferences or wants) I am more likely to repeat trade. I care more about the thought process of extra choice than the price/quality/etc.
There is a specific beer that I seem to receive a lot as an extra. It is highly rated but has relatively high distribution. This specific one annoys me when I receive it because I have it rated much below average on this site.

 

Sure am I! I'm getting the exact beers I'm asking for...that's all I care about Any extras I get, that don't really appeal to me, I sometimes just give them out as an extra in my next trade.

I never tape bottle caps. It doesn't seem necessary. I think only once have I received a trade were caps were taped.

 

I like your mindset on the matter. I have noticed I am more likely to include extras when trading with a repeat trader because I feel like I have a better understanding of what they would enjoy and I get great pleasure from sharing something special with a trusted repeat trader. Lower quality extras bother me more so for the fact that its wasted beer in my opinion because I'll probably never drink it or it'll end up going down the drain. Here recently I've tried to include more non-beer extras and instead send some cool beer swag or merch from a brewery the other individual is trading for. Good example would be glassware. Veil, Triple Crossing and The Answer (house glasses not the videogame themed ones ) all usually have very reasonably priced ($5) glasses available so I don't mind grabbing and sending some proper glassware as an extra.

 

Regarding the tape, I've received 1 Bottle Logic and two Trillium bottle stouts now that the cap wasn't taped and the bottles leaked. not all in the same package/trade mind you but something happened during transit and I ended up with a box of soggy beer. Not sure tape would have saved me in those occasions but I figure it can't hurt.

 

Not sure if you saw my other post in regards to the tape so I'll respond here as well, I've received on three different occasions bottles that leaked for whatever reason (poor handling would be my guess) and those were the only bottles I have received that were not taped. Would the tape have saved me on the bottles that leaked? Not sure but I figure it can't hurt. Also, when a trade for bottles and they come taped, I remove the tape as soon as I unpack the box and give the cap a quick wipe down with a damp cloth to remove any sticky residue. Most of the time there isn't much to clean up as the tape hasn't been on long and as long as it isn't the dead of summer usually will leave no residue.

 

It can hurt, because it can become really difficult to get the damn stuff off. It can hurt my fingers & my feelings.

And if a sealed cap didn't prevent leaking, what good is tape going to do? Honest question. IMHO, the answer is "nothing". Sounds like you had some bad luck. I've received thousands of bottles over the years, almost none taped, & never had a leaker.

I've received a number of bottles over the years where the trader clearly taped up the bottle right after buying/receiving it, & the tape has already calcified by the time it reaches me. Twice, in extreme examples, the tape was as big as my fist. No joke. I opened a Huna this fall that I thought for a while I wasn't going to be able to get into. Ever.

 

The purpose of bubble wrap is to make sure that the bottle(s) get to their location safely. Sometimes this requires mummy taping. I am not going to worry about re-using a dollar's worth of bubble at the expense of a thirty dollar bottle of beer.

 

What type of tape are people using?

I caution (new traders) against using anything except electrical tape. Also, anyone that uses tape can fold a very small amount back on itself to make a "pull tab" much like people do for taping bottles that get waxed. I've only rarely had trouble opening taped bottles, but the bottles I have opened that had a "pull tab" like this were certainly easier.

 

I can't be certain but I would assume the leaking cap was due to poor handling by postal workers not a bad cap job. Would the tape have helped, maybe or maybe not. I know I just get a warmer fuzzier feeling when I see it. I do realize some people go overboard with the tape and some also apply way to early just as you stated. I guess it just comes down to packaging the beer in a way it actually survives the trip and any jackass postal employee who wants to play kickball with it Also, for those that do tape and are reading this please wait until packaging to apply, four to five wraps around is plenty and for god's sake put a damn buddy tab on it so we can get the stuff off when it lands!